Apple's Latest Macs Could Start a New Chip War

Widely expected to announce a new line of Mac computers Tuesday morning at its latest "event," Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) could very well ignite a new war over processors by doing so.

That's the view of numerous pundits, who see the company's announcement that it would power the devices with a proprietary chip as a possible opening shot in such a conflict. The company had been utilizing x86 chips from processor giant Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) since 2006; in June it announced that it would transition the full Mac line to its silicon chip in a two-year process.

In the heyday of the PC, Intel was a dominant player, in near-constant battle with the perennial runner-up, Advanced Micro Devices. However, new competitors have been entering the field in the age of the smartphone.

Source Fool.com